Mumbai Dabbawala — since 1890

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Notes fromthe Relay.

Dispatches from the daily run — stories, recipes, and updates from our Perth kitchen.

Aug 2026 · Lead story

Welcome to Mumbai Dabbawala Perth

Our heritage lunchbox service launches in Perth this September.

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Most recent

  1. 01Meet the team behind your lunchJuly 2026
  2. 02The tiffin and the planet: why steel beats disposable every dayJuly 2026
  3. 03How tiffin delivery actually works in PerthJuly 2026

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July 2026

What makes a real Gujarati thali (and why ours is different)

Sweet, sour, salty, spicy — a proper Gujarati thali balances four tastes at once. Here's how our head chef builds one.

July 2026

What 'Fixed Thali' Actually Means (and Why We Don't Do À La Carte)

No menu-scrolling, no per-meal ordering. Here's the reasoning behind Mumbai Dabbawala's fixed daily thali model.

July 2026

Why Perth is falling in love with the dabbawala tradition

A 130-year-old lunch delivery system meets a modern Australian city — and the fit is better than anyone expected.

June 2026

A Short History of the Dabbawala Delivery Code

Before barcodes, before apps — Mumbai's dabbawalas built a routing system out of coloured marks on a lid. It still works.

June 2026

Why We Still Use Steel Dabbas in 2026

Single-use packaging is the default everywhere else. Here's why Mumbai Dabbawala never considered it for Perth.

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